John Lydon: Iconoclastic Talent Contest Judge
Thursday April 05, 2007 @ 06:00 PM
By: ChartAttack.com Staff

John Lydon

John Lydon is currently garnering attention for his contribution to Bodog Music's Battle Of The Bands reality television series, in which more than 7,000 hopeful acts will be pared down to one who will win a $1-million recording contract. But the former Sex Pistols/Public Image Limited frontman, who's probably best known to the world as Johnny Rotten, isn't the first person you'd think would jump at the opportunity to be part of such a thing.

Yet he is, along with fellow judges Billy Duffy of The Cult and Bif Naked. However, unlike others, Lydon sees his role in the contest as a chance to promote his ideals over his image. Feeling that much of his personal mandate has either been diluted or completely misread over the past three decades, Lydon speaks about his years of notoriety and how it has affected the punk scene that he had a strong hand in creating.

"I'm more unpopular than popular… now that has turned unpopular into popular. I never meant it to be like that. What you get is, 'Oh, surely it's an act.' I'm not acting. [The judging] is fun because I believe in what I'm doing. Most people need an act because they want to be popular, get girlfriends or make money.

"I just fell into it almost accidentally with an I Hate Pink Floyd T-shirt… and I don't hate Pink Floyd. There's no reason I should. Fans try to put you into boxes, and it's so wrong. That's not the message I've been trying to teach for years."

Naturally, seeing Lydon on a reality show prompts some critics to attack. And while it seems out of character, he deftly provides reasoning that, in a grander scheme, it's supporting bona fide art.

"These [bands] are making an effort. They're trying to communicate — which is supposed to make us better than monkeys. We want to advance? Music and the arts do that. But the bureaucracy and bourgeoisie have co-opted that. Now, here we are in the 21st century creating art without effort or communication."

Lydon is direct in driving his point home. While his participation in this program might not have an impact on most people, it supports those who are trying.

"I live for a world where everyone would be able to create and put their asses on the line on a daily basis," Lydon says. "Is that such a bizarre concept?

"The cheek of us to throw away the privilege people didn't have 100 years ago, such as seeing live music. Now, instead of applauding their guts to get on a stage and perform, we cast them off.

"Being Mr. Rotten, a sickly ill child who managed to stand on stage and be disputed by the House Of Commons under the Traitors And Treason Act — which carried the death penalty at the time — is what I've done for life," he concludes, rounding toward his point.

"I changed that. Carrying the death penalty on a point of view is contrary to democracy. The assholes and talentless give you trouble. You never get trouble from people who are genuinely talented."

—Keith Carman